Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold was less than impressed after being hooked against Brighton but Jurgen Klopp has claimed the defender didn't get the support he needed.
The Reds crashed out of the FA Cup as their disappointing campaign continued. The Seagulls, who had beaten Klopp's side just weeks ago, secured a late 2-1 victory thanks to Kaoru Mitoma's stoppage time goal. Alexander-Arnold struggled to cope with the forward and was brought off before the hour mark.
The right-back has been a stalwart for Liverpool and is rarely substituted, but he has been inconsistent this term. His frustrated facial expression summed up his feelings as James Milner came on to replace him but Klopp defended his player despite his decision.
He told Radio 5 Live: "We came here after a game a few weeks ago when we weren’t even close to ourselves. Today we played a better game but we concede two goals from set-pieces and that is not allowed in any way. On the left side Robbo was okay because we helped him but on the other side Trent didn’t get the support.
"Mitoma is really good so, of course, it was tough. We could have defended both goals better. The first is deflected but we can probably block the shot. It doesn’t feel great. In time we might see the positives but we wanted to get the next round. Congratulations to Brighton."
The Reds have now won just one of their last six games with their poor form from 2022 translating over into the New Year. Klopp's side face an uphill battle to make the top four whilst they have Real Madrid in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
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Andy Robertson was hoping to see an uplift in 2023 but concedes the team have gone in the other direction. "This season has been nowhere near good enough," he told ITV Sport. "At the start of the year, we wanted a fresh start but that hasn't happened - we've been worse. In the league, we haven't been good enough and now we're out of both cups.
"You can't put your finger on one thing, it's more than that. You can tell we're not as confident in front of goal and in defence we are a wee bit open. We had two clean sheets coming into today but then go and concede two goals. We need to get the confidence back, it's easier said than done, and that's how we will get results."
Liverpool now have three Premier League games before they return to European action. They will take on Wolves and Newcastle on the road, sandwiched in between a home clash against Merseyside rivals Everton, who will have appointed a new manager
